Pridemore quits, endorses Heck in key race

Olympia entrepreneur Denny Heck has copped big-name Democratic backers in his race for the open 3rd District U.S. House seat, but on Tuesday received the most coveted backing yet – from his chief opponent.

State Sen. Craig Pridemore, D-Vancouver, announced he was withdrawing from the race because he fallen far behind in the race for campaign dollars.

Pridemore offered his “full endorsement” to Heck, adding: “Denny is a bright, hard-working and authentic SW Washington leader and we need his broad experience working for us in Congress.”

Heck

Pridemore was the liberal in the contest, having won an endorsement last month from the Washington State Labor Council, and backing from the Sierra Club. He has been touted by liberal Seattle websites.

Although he has been out of office for a quarter-century, Heck has drawn on old political contacts, and was out in the field while Pridemore was tied down in a prolonged session of the Washington State Legislature.

Heck was endorsed by Gov. Chris Gregoire, ex-Gov. Booth Gardner — he served as an influential chief-of-staff to Gardner — retiring U.S. Rep. Brian Baird, and former Democratic State Chairman Paul Berendt.

Heck is a co-founder of the TVW public affairs network, and was an early investor in RealNetworks. He has stressed the need for “green” and other jobs in a part of the state hit hard by the current recession.

He came to Olympia as a Clark County legislator in his mid-20’s, became chief clerk of the state House of Representatives, and was nicknamed “Governor Heck” as chief aide to a governor whose second term featured a prolonged male mid-life crisis. He then went on to success in the private sector.

The shakeup on the Democratic side of the fence comes in the midst of a hot race between two Republican hopefuls in the 3rd District. The district embraces most of Southwest Washington. It was carried in 2008 by President Obama, but also GOP gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi.

State Rep. Jaime Herrera will kick off her campaign in Vancouver on Tuesday, with ex-Sen. Slade Gorton and U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris-Rogers on the dais.

Herrera is a former aide to the Eastern Washington congresswoman.

But Olympia businessman David Castillo, who held sub-cabinet posts in the Bush administration, has been sharp and articulate in early debates, and secured influential support in the Tea Party movement.